The Wizards are quietly happy that guard Nick Young is starting to embrace a role as a defender of bigger and more athletic guards.

Young, in his third season, has had some pretty good showings lately. He was effective shadowing Dwyane Wade in the team's victory at Miami. More recently he played a huge role in the team's victory over Toronto with his defense on athletic rookie guard/forward DeMar DeRozan.

"He has the athletic tools to become a nightmare at the defensive end," an Eastern Conference scout, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said. "I know that he has had a difficult job making the transition to the pros; he's been up and down. But I think the offensive game is going to be easy for him to get a grasp on.

"I know that Flip (Saunders, the head coach) thinks he can become a much better defender because of his length and athleticism. He hasn't shown that yet. But if he wants to continue getting the playing time he's starting to see he's going to have to keep improving in that area."

This is a crucial time for Young. He has started four games in place of injured Mike Miller (calf). When Miller returns -- he should return to the lineup within the next three weeks or so -- he'll likely go right back into the starting lineup. Young will once again be battling for minutes.

WIZARDS 106, RAPTORS: 102: Antawn Jamison led the Wizards with 30 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Wizards to their third win in their last five games.

Gilbert Arenas scored 12 points and Jamison added 10 as the Wizards, down by five points early in the fourth quarter, dominated the rest of the way.